Van Dijk recalls 'weird' news of Klopp leaving

VIRGIL VAN DIJK has opened up how Jurgen Klopp told the Liverpool squad of his intention to step down as manager last year.

- By PAUL GORST Liverpool FC Correspondent

The Reds captain describes the bombshell news as "f****** weird".

And the now two-time Premier League winner has also detailed the differences between his former boss and current head coach Arne Slot in a chat with fashion and lifestyle magazine GQ. Klopp's decision to step away after nine, largely decorated years at Anfield was made public in late January 2024, having informed the club's owners Fenway Sports Group in November 2023.

Van Dijk says the players learned of Klopp's decision two days before it became common knowledge on Friday, January 26 of last year, and admitted it was a surreal experience for the entire squad to live through.

"We only found out Jurgen was leaving a couple days before everyone else," Van Dijk reveals. "It was very tough to hear. The day he told us, we were all being called into the dressing room and it was f****** weird.